Chinese adjectives () differ from adjectives in English in that they can be used as verbs (for example ; "sky black <sub></sub>") and thus linguists sometimes prefer to use the terms static or stative verb to describe them.
When a noun is modified using an adjective, the associative particle de is inserted between the adjective and the noun. For example, gÃÂo xìng hái zi "happy child". is sometimes omitted to reduce repetitiveness (e.g., two or more instances of within a sentence); it is also omitted in some established adjective-noun pairs to improve sentence flow (e.g., the TV show in China). It is also more typical to omit when a single-syllable adjective is used than for a multi-syllable adjective (e.g., compare () with ). In general, there are no strict rules regarding when can be omitted; however, some adjectives and adjective-noun pairs are more often seen without the associative particle than others.
Some examples:
Unlike English, subjects and predicate adjectives in a Chinese sentence are not linked by copula but by degree adverbs, such as hÃÂn "very," hÃÂo "highly", zhÃÂn "really," and fÃÂicháng "extraordinarily, extremely." For example, the following sentences express increasing degrees of "beauty":
A complementary adverb (e.g. jÃÂ le) can also specify the degree of an adjective:
NB: often functions as a dummy linking adverb and does not carry the meaning of "very". For example, is often understood and translated as "She is beautiful".
Besides, in colloquial Chinese the pattern "" (sÃÂ le, literally "to death") or "" is sometimes used in exaggeration to highlight the extent of influence, where AA is an adjective and BB is the thing being affected. Examples include
The linking verb shì (to be) is used with adjectives in the patternâÂÂNoun + + Adj + âÂÂto state or emphasize a fact or a perceived fact. For example:
Since is a possessive particle, and the following noun is understood here, more precise translations would be "He is a male one", "That car is a new one", and "That cat is a black one".